Oakland County school officials blast Snyder proposal for state education overhaul

FILE - In this April 27, 2011 file photo, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder delivers an address at a United Way office in Detroit on changes he wants to see in education. A proposal that Snyder commissioned to overhaul Michigan's education system would let students take their public funding to any district that will accept them, enroll in state-funded online learning courses and get $2,500 in scholarship money for each semester they graduate early from high school. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

Oakland Schools regional Superintendent Vickie Markavitch said the "any time, any place, any way and at any pace" education overhaul proposal introduced by Gov. Rick Snyder Monday is both "radical experiment" and "dangerous."

Markavitch said she and other superintendents believe the 302-page proposal drafted by the private Oxford Foundation and presented to the Legislature Monday is not based on tried and true educational methods and has no accountability built in.

If passed by the Legislature as is, "it could end in more taxpayer money going to private companies," Markavitch said.

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Snyder's proposal would award students up to $10,000 in scholarship money for graduating early from high school at a rate of $2,500 per semester, and districts would be encouraged to offer year-round schooling by spreading the 180-day school year over 12 months.

It also would let students complete coursework online, with Michigan funding the classes based on performance.

And students could get part or all of their state-funded education from any public school district or charter school that accepts them. It would still allow public school districts to decide whether to accept outside students.

"This is a radical experiment, untried, unproven, and dangerous," said Markavitch.

"There is no plan to have accountability follow the child, no quality standards before opening the door to any and all school operators, no transparency regulation on how those entities would be using public money, and missing from the conversation all together is any reference to best practices -- using what has been tried and proven," Markavitch said.

Basically, she alleges, the proposal would create a state-wide education system in place of the local autonmous school districts existing now.

Voucher system?

West Bloomfield school Superintendent Gerald Hill said one major concern is the proposal "really looks like a strong componant of developing a state voucher system -- even though that term isn't used in the legislation."

Hill said all funding would be at state level and money would follow students and not be assigned to any district

"That is a voucher system," Hill said. Senate Democratic Leader Gretchen Whitmer also called it a voucher system.

Also, Hill said the foundation on which the plan is based -- that Michigan's public schools do not prepare students to be college ready -- is faulty. This is expecially untrue in Oakland County, he said.

"Over 90 percent of our students (in West Bloomfield) go on to college and they are very successful."

Both Hill and Markavitch are concerned that there will be a diversion of public dollars to the private sector as more charter schools open to provide the education that will get students through high school at a faster pace.

What about kids?

Tresa Zumsteg, interim superintendent for Rochester Community Schools, said, "I would like to believe that Gov. Snyder is interested in improving learning for students but I find that hard to believe when his plan is to entrust our children to any 'fly by night' for-profit organization without any accountability or transparency to our parents or taxpayers."

Zumsteg is concerned Michigan's neediest children will be handed over to companies without research-based strategies, rather than implementing strategies such as early childhood programs and preventive health screenings, and providing nutritional meals that have been proven to help children in poverty and "at-risk."

"For school districts like Rochester Community Schools which are successful by several different measures, (Gov. Snyder) wants to implement schools that are 'selective' and can turn away children with special needs who do not meet the criteria and only admit those of certain abilities.

"Since there is a limited pot of money, these selective schools would take away dollars from our students and our foundation allowance, leaving even less money for the children who remain," Zumsteg said.

"I want to believe that Gov. Snyder has our student's best interest at heart, but I am beginning to believe he just wants to dismantle public education," Zumsteg said. Elected officials should take close look

Waterford school Superintendent John Silveri said, "Our elected officials should be taking a careful, surgical approach by focusing on specific problems where they exist, working in collaboration with experts in the field of education to make well-planned and well thought out decisions based on research, results and best practice.

"Instead, our governor and legislators appear determined to continue to blast away with a shotgun approach, seeking to cure public education's perceived ills in a broad, hasty, short-sighted and ill-conceived ideological rush to judgment," Silveri said.

In combination with other recent legislation, "this is tantamount to a takeover of public education by private and political interests, seemingly grounded in the belief that they can do better in some mysterious and unfounded way," Silveri said.

"Our children must not be used to help fulfill a political agenda; they deserve far better, as do all citizens of the State of Michigan."

State Board of Education President John Austin also sharply criticized the proposal, calling it a voucher system.

"It's absolutely destructive. It has nothing to do with improving quality. It's loaded with the ideology of creating a new for-profit system for learning that will dismantle the schools we have."